Application-based commercial ground transportation management system

ABSTRACT

A management system for a Permitting Authority (PA) or its appointed designee to monitor and track application-based commercial ground transportation (ABCT) Provider activity through the ABCT-Driver&#39;s mobile device, the ABCT-Provider&#39;s app, the ABCT-Provider&#39;s computer systems, and the PA&#39;s electronically-enabled geo-fence, all without the need for specialized hardware such as transponders or other tracking equipment. Each mobile communication device associated with an ABCT-Vehicle continually transmits information to an ABCT-Provider Information and Communications Technology (“ICT”) System associated with an ABCT-Provider when an application on the mobile communication device is active. The information transmitted by the mobile communication device enables the ABCT-Provider ICT System to identify and monitor the ABCT-Driver&#39;s identity, the vehicle information, the geographic locus, and/or the ABCT-Vehicle&#39;s activity data.

BACKGROUND

A new mode of online enabled application-based commercial groundtransportation (ABCT) has necessitated a new process for airports orother geographically-defined authorities, or “Permitting Authorities”(PA), to manage such transportation activity.

Commercial transportation plays an important role in carrying passengersto and from airports. Commercial transportation includes taxicabs,limousines, busses, and shuttle vans. Commercial transportation alsoincludes ABCT—online enabled application-based platforms used to connectpassengers with drivers using their commercial or personalnon-commercial vehicles. ABCT-Providers include what is known in theState of California as Transportation Network Companies (TNCs).Commercial transportation to and from airports is a lucrative business,with drivers typically earning their highest fares overall on trips toand from airports.

State and local governments regulate the various modes of commercialtransportation on public roads, whereas airports regulate their ownroadways and commercial activity on their property. Airports mustmaintain a safe and efficient use of their roadways for the travelingpublic. Airports must also, as required by federal law, be selfsustaining. Airports, therefore, typically issue Permits, leases, orother transactional instruments to commercial ground transportationproviders and charge periodic fees, per-trip fees, or other charges tocover the costs to maintain and regulate their roadways.

Traditionally, airports and other PAs have monitored, charged, andmanaged commercial transportation providers and vehicles through manualsystems or permanently-affixed transponder devices to track themovements of vehicles on airport roadways. ABCT has presented a newchallenge for airports and other PAs because to place a transponder orother permanent tracking device in a vehicle that is not always used forcommercial transportation would be impracticable. It may also beregarded as restrictive by drivers whose private trips to an airportmaybe tracked by the transponder readers.

What is needed in the art is a way to regulate ABCT-Provider activitieswithin a PA such as an airport. Specifically, PAs need a managementsystem to monitor and track ABCT-Vehicles through a mobile communicationdevice without the need for specialized hardware such as transpondersand/or other tracking equipment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is related to a management system for a PermittingAuthority or its appointed designee to monitor and track ABCT-Provideractivity through the ABCT-Driver's mobile device, the ABCT-Provider'sapplication (“app”), the ABCT-Provider's computer systems, and the PA'selectronically-enabled geographic coordinates (“geo-fence”), all withoutthe need for specialized hardware such as transponders or other trackingequipment. Each mobile communication device associated with anABCT-Vehicle continually transmits information to an ABCT-ProviderInformation and Communications Technology (“ICT”) System when anapplication on the mobile communication device is active. Theinformation transmitted by the mobile communication device enables theABCT-Provider ICT System to identify the ABCT-Driver's identity, thevehicle information, the geographic locus, and/or the ABCT-Vehicle'sactivity data.

Based on the data received from the mobile communication device, theABCT-Provider ICT System determines if the mobile communication deviceis within a predefined geo-fenced perimeter. If the mobile communicationdevice is within the geo-fenced perimeter, the ABCT-Provider ICT Systemgenerates a message comprising at least one unique code and transmitsthe message to a PA ICT System associated with a PA. The unique codeincludes at least one driver ID and at least one ABCT customer triptransaction code. The PA ICT System generates a report containing theunique code and a vehicle ID and transmits the report to a complianceofficer. The PA ICT System may also, in some embodiments, transmit themessage to a PA financial server, wherein the PA financial servergenerates an invoice for each ABCT-Provider activity taking place withinthe geo-fence.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a system for managing an ABCT-Vehicle based onlocation and activity data, according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a system for managing an ABCT-Provider permittedactivity on a PA property.

FIGS. 3A-3F illustrate graphic user interface (GUI) of a compliancereport, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a management dashboard display, according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates a reconciliation report, according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a system logical architecture design for theprincipal message handling components of the PA ICT System.

FIG. 7 illustrates a system for managing the activity of multipleABCT-Providers at multiple PAs, according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates a method for managing an ABCT-Vehicle based onlocation and activity data, according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a method for billing an ABCT-Provider for servicesrendered at a PA, according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates a method for billing multiple ABCT-Providers forservices rendered at multiple PAs, according to one embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention discloses systems and methods for a PA to managethe activities of an ABCT-Provider.

OVERVIEW

An ABCT-Provider is a company that uses an online-enabled platform toconnect passengers with ABCT-Drivers who are using their commercial orpersonal, non-commercial, vehicles to transport passengers. TheABCT-Drivers communicate with ABCT-Providers and passengers via mobilecommunication devices, such as a smart phone.

Each mobile communication device associates an ABCT-Driver with anABCT-Vehicle and an ABCT-Provider though the use of an app within theABCT-Driver's communication device. The ABCT-Driver's app communicateswith the ABCT-Provider's ICT System. When active, the application withinthe ABCT-Driver's mobile communications device transmits the geographiclocation of the ABCT-Vehicle at regular intervals to the ABCT-Provider.The ABCT-Provider uses this information to show ABCT customers thelocation of nearby ABCT-Vehicles.

The ABCT-Provider uses the most recent geographic coordinates of themobile communication device to determine whether the mobilecommunication device is inside a PA's geo-fence. The geo-fence maycomprise one or more polygons whose vertices are geographic coordinatesbased on a standard coordinates system for the Earth such as WGS84. TheABCT-Provider ICT System transmits to the PA ICT System associated withthe geo-fence an information message at regular intervals throughout thetime that the ABCT-Vehicle is within the PA's geo-fence. The use ofmultiple geo-fence polygons provides the PA the ability to monitor andmanage the movement of ABCT-Vehicles within the PA's property.

The PA ICT System receives the information messages from ABCT ICTSystem, which specifies ABCT-Provider activities on the PA's property.The PA ICT System stores the ABCT-Provider information messages. Thereare at least 5 different types of information message. The message typeis identified within the body of each message:

-   -   1. PR—a Presence information message signifies the vehicle is        within a geo-fence.    -   2. EN—an Entry information message is transmitted once on        geo-fence entry.    -   3. EX—an Exit information message is transmitted once on        geo-fence exit.    -   4. DO—a Drop Off information message is transmitted once when an        ABCT-Driver closes a transaction i.e. collects a fare, within        the PA's geo-fence.    -   5. PU—a Pick Up information message is transmitted once when an        ABCT-Driver initiates a transaction i.e. starts a trip, with an        ABCT customer within the geo-fence.

Based on a predetermined set of business rules, a PA ICT System maygenerate a financial invoice for any of the activities listed above andperformed by an ABCT-Provider within a geo-fenced perimeter.

In one embodiment, the active mobile communication device app transmitsto an ABCT-Provider ICT System a unique code with the coordinates of theABCT-Vehicle, which identifies to the ABCT-Provider ICT System, both thespecific identity of the ABCT-Driver and the specific ABCT-Providercustomer transaction.

The ABCT-Provider ICT System generates a message comprising the uniquecode, which ties both trip and driver, the ABCT ID, the message type,the vehicle identity, the date and time and the geographic coordinatesto the PA ICT System. The PA Permit may specify the format of themessage contents that ABCT-Providers are required to provide to the PA.The unique code allows the PA to both validate the ABCT-Driver'sidentity with the ABCT-Provider and authenticate the ABCT-Driver's tripat a curbside inspection.

The PA ICT System relays the vehicle identity and the ABCT-Provider'sunique code to the PA's compliance officers who manage curbsideenforcement of PA's ground transportation rules and regulations. Thecompliance officer can compare and verify the ABCT-Provider's uniquecode, provided by the ABCT-Provider's ICT System, with the codepresented on the ABCT-Driver's communications device.

The PA ICT System also relays those information messages which triggertransaction charges to the PA's financial engine. The PA's financialengine collates individual ABCT-Provider transaction information,reconciles the information with a predetermined set of business rulesfor invoicing and issues invoices to the ABCT-Provider.

In another embodiment, a third party such as a national or regionalclearinghouse may be used to manage transaction fee collection fromABCT-Providers because deploying app-based ground transportationmanagement systems, as described above, in every PA can be costly andinefficient to PAs and ABCT-Providers. A PA provides geo-fenceinformation to a third party which forwards those data to participatingABCT ICT Systems. The ABCT ICT Systems provide information messages tothe third party ICT Systems relating to activities within the geo-fencedperimeter of a plurality of PAs. The third party aggregates alltransaction data relating to specific ABCT-Providers and issues invoicesto respective ABCT-Providers. The ABCT-Providers, in turn, providetransaction fee payments for the invoices to the third party.

DEFINITIONS

“Mobile communication device”, as used herein and throughout thisdisclosure, refers to any electronic device capable of wirelesslysending and receiving data. A mobile communication device may have aprocessor, a memory, a transceiver, an input, and an output. Examples ofsuch devices include cellular telephones, personal digital assistants(PDAs), portable computers, etc. The memory stores applications,software, or logic. Examples of processors are computer processors(processing units), microprocessors, digital signal processors,controllers and microcontrollers, etc. Examples of device memories thatmay comprise logic include RAM (random access memory), flash memories,ROMS (read-only memories), EPROMS (erasable programmable read-onlymemories), and EEPROMS (electrically erasable programmable read-onlymemories). Mobile communications devices may be built into vehicles forthe purpose of transmitting vehicle geo-locational and other data.

“Communication channel”, as used herein and throughout this disclosure,refers to a wireless network, a wireline network, or any networkincluding a combination of wireless and wireline network elements. Acommunication channel can include broadband wide-area networks,local-area networks, and personal area networks. Communication across acommunication channel is preferably packet-based; however, radio andfrequency/amplitude modulations networks can enable communicationbetween communication devices using appropriate analog-digital-analogconverters and other elements. Examples of radio networks includecellular (GPRS, UMTS, TDMA, CDMA, etc.), Wi-Fi, BLUETOOTH® networks,etc., with communication being enabled by hardware elements called“transceivers.” Some mobile communication devices may have more than onetransceiver, capable of communicating over different networks. Forexample, a cellular telephone can include a GPRS transceiver forcommunicating with a cellular base station, a Wi-Fi transceiver forcommunicating with a Wi-Fi network, and a positioning satellite receiverfor receiving a signal from a positioning satellite. A communicationchannel typically includes a plurality of elements that host logic forperforming tasks on the telecommunication network. In modernpacket-based wide-area networks, servers may be placed at severallogical points on the telecommunication network. Servers may further bein communication with databases and can enable communication devices toaccess the contents of a database. A server can span several networkelements, including other servers in the telecommunication network.

“Geo-fence”, as used herein and throughout this disclosure, refers to avirtual perimeter on a geographic area, as defined with standardgeographic coordinates based on an standard coordinates system such asWGS84, defined by a Permitting Authority, a service provider, or adriver. A geo-fence is based on (Global Positioning Satellite) GPScoordinates defined on a specific coordinates system. A geo-fence can beany shape known in the art, such as for example, a polygon defined byfour points. In a telecommunication network, a mobile communicationdevice is location-aware in that it usually is capable of estimating itsgeo-location by communicating with local cell-sites and other networkinfrastructure. The mobile device can make its geo-location dataavailable to applications running within the device. These applicationscan send/transmit these data to applications/systems elsewhere. Themobile communication device may respond with a notification, anapplication, or interaction with connected hardware such as a smartvehicle. For instance, geo-fences may be used to notify parents ofchildren leaving designated areas, shut down a vehicle before entering arestricted area, etc.

An “activity” as used herein and throughout this disclosure, includesbeing within a geo-fence, entering a geo-fenced perimeter, exiting ageo-fenced perimeter, performing a pick-up service within a geo-fencedperimeter or performing a drop-off service within a geo-fencedperimeter.

FIG. 1 shows a system for monitoring the activity of a driver associatedwith an ABCT-Provider, according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention. The system includes a mobile communication device 120associated with an ABCT-Driver communicating with an ABCT ICT System 100across a communication channel 110. In one embodiment, each mobilecommunication device comprises an app, wherein the app associates anABCT-Driver to an ABCT-Vehicle and an ABCT-Provider. The applicationcommunicates with the ABCT ICT System via a communication channel 110.

The ABCT ICT System 100 comprises at least a geo-fence database 104, adriver account database 106 and an activity log database 108.

The geo-fence database 104 stores a plurality of geo-fences. Eachgeo-fence defines a perimeter, entry to which is monitored andcontrolled by a PA, and inside of which an ABCT-Provider pays a fee forconducting business. In one embodiment, a plurality of geo-fences candefine a perimeter which is monitored and controlled by a PA.

The driver account database 106 stores a plurality of driver accountinformation, which may include a unique ID associated with the driver,driver's name, driver's social security number, and driver's licensenumber. Each driver account is linked to at least one mobilecommunication device and at least one vehicle. In one embodiment, thedriver account database 106 can be invoked to determine which driver isconducting business within the geo-fence perimeter.

The activity log database 108 stores a log of the location of theABCT-Vehicle. In one embodiment, each activity performed by a driver mayalso be stored in the activity log database. Such activities mayinclude: presence within a geo-fence, entry into the geo-fencedperimeter, exit out of the geo-fenced perimeter, a pick-up activity anda drop-off activity.

Each element in FIG. 1 can communicate with other elements directly orindirectly, and can communicate with other elements wired or wirelessly.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment, the ABCT ICT System 100receives a plurality of location information from each mobilecommunication device 120. The location information is sent from eachmobile communication device on a periodic basis. For example, a mobilecommunication device may send location information to the ABCT-ProviderICT System every 5 seconds. In one embodiment, activity information isalso sent along with the location information. The location information,information associated with the mobile communication device, and/or theactivity information is stored in the activity log database 108.

The location information is determined at a GPS chip on mobilecommunication device 120, by methods known in the art, such asperforming a signal strength triangulation from antennas nearby mobilecommunication device 120. Logical elements on network such as an LCSclient, a GMLC server, SUPL server, are not shown, but can be used todetermine a precise location of device 120, by methods known in the art.PAs may provide local Wi-Fi services to enhance the accuracy of thegeo-location data.

As each location information is received by the ABCT ICT System 100, themonitoring logic means 102 determines if the location of the mobilecommunication device is within a predefined geo-fenced area. To thatend, the monitoring logic means 102 references the stored geo-fencecoordinates stored in the geo-fence database 104 and compares them tothe location information received by each mobile communication device.

A messaging module 112 of the ABCT ICT System 100 generates a message,in real-time, once the monitoring logic module 102 determines that thelocation of a mobile communication device is within a geo-fence.According to an embodiment, the message comprises a header including adriver ID, trip ID, ABCT ID, vehicle license plate ID, activity timestamp, activity data, number of users using the ABCT service associatedwith the activity data, and geographic locus associated with the mobilecommunication device within the geo-fence. To generate the message, themessaging module 112 may access the geo-fence database 104, the driveraccount database 106 and/or the activity log database in 108 in order togenerate the message. In an embodiment, the message format is providedin a format that adheres to the format defined in a PA Permit.

In one embodiment, the messaging module uses the HTTPS protocol to POSTdata associated with a permitted activity. The activity data may beposted to a URL with the following URL encoding employed:https://216.9.96.29:8443/ABCT/services/audit?uid=“<value>”&ABCT_id=“<value>”&licence_plate=“<value>”&timestamp=“<value>”&txn_type=“<value>”&ride_count=“<value>”&lon=“<value>”&lat=“<value>”.

The ABCT monitoring server 100 transmits the message, in real-time, to aPA ICT System 114 for monitoring activities of the drivers associatedwith the mobile communication device and for billing via a communicationconnection 111. The PA ICT System 114, in turn, generates an invoice forall the fees associated with the activities provided by theABCT-Provider within the geo-fenced perimeter, and provides it to theABCT-Provider for payment.

In another embodiment, the ABCT ICT System 100 transmits the message, inreal-time, to a third party such as a national or regionalclearinghouse, for invoicing. The third party, in turn, generates aninvoice for all the ABCT-Provider permitted activities occurring withinthe geo-fence perimeter by the ABCT-Driver.

FIG. 2 shows a system for monitoring ABCT activity within the perimetersof a geo-fence area, according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention. The system includes PA ICT System 200 communicating with adata storage means 204 for storing messages received from ABCT-Providers202 via a communication connection known in the art. In one embodiment,data is extracted from the received messages and stored in a relationaldatabase. In another embodiment, the messages are stored in the datastorage as data logs.

The PA ICT System 200 includes a data storage means 204 operativelyconnected to an analytic engine 210. Other components of the PA ICTSystem 201 may include a real-time map module 206, a compliance managermodule 207, a management dashboard module 208, and a reconciliationreport module 209. Each module may generate queries that involveretrieving data from the data storage 204 or may automatically receivespecified data from the data storage 204.

The PA ICT System 200 also includes a network interface 211 enablingeach of a plurality of ABCT-Providers 202 to communicate with the PA ICTSystem 200 through a communication connection known in the art. Eachtime an ABCT-Provider 202 transmits a message to the PA ICT System 200,via the network interface 211, the messages may be stored in the datastorage means 204. In one embodiment, the messages are logged. Inanother embodiment, data from the messages is extracted and segregatedinto functional areas for analytic purposes. For example, dataidentifying the ABCT-Vehicle and the activity may be collected andstored as tables that the PA ICT System 200 maintains to describe eachABCT-Provider 202 activity within the geo-fenced area.

The real-time map module 206 may automatically receive data relating tothe location of an ABCT-Driver each time a message is received by the PAICT System 200. In one embodiment, each time a message is received froman ABCT-Provider 202 and stored in the data storage means 204, thelicense plate, longitude and latitude information contained in themessage is transmitted to the real-time map module 206. In a preferredembodiment, the real-time map module 206 has a map of the geo-fenceperimeter and is overlaid with icons representing the real-time locationof the ABCT-Drivers. The real-time map module 206 updates a map with thereceived information. In one embodiment, the icons are color coded basedon which ABCT-Provider 202 they are associated with. Additionally, auser may be able to click or select the icon, such that additionalinformation is displayed, such as driver ID, license plate number, or anassociated ABCT-Provider.

The compliance module 207 may generate a report comprising thetransaction history of all ABCT-Provide r202 activities within ageo-fenced perimeter. The report may be generated in real-time, and mayalso comprise transaction history of ABCT-Provider 202 activity within aspecified time period. For example, the report may include transactionhistories of ABCT-Provider 202 activities within the last hour or withinthe last day. In one embodiment, the report may include the date andtime range each ABCT-Provider 202 vehicle has been within the geo-fencedperimeter, the ABCT ID, the license plate number of the ABCT-Vehicle,and the activity the ABCT-Vehicle is engaged in. For example, one entryin the report may indicate the following information for a vehicleassociated with the ABCT-Provider 202 that was in the geo-fencedperimeter: the vehicle was in the geo-fenced perimeter for 20 minutes,has dropped off a passenger, the vehicle's license plate number being,for example, SDXZ268, and the ABCT-Provider name.

In one embodiment, the compliance module 207, via the analytic engine210, may compare the information contained in each message with a set ofbusiness rules to determine ABCT-Provider violations. For example, thecompliance module may determine that an ABCT-Vehicle has been within ageo-fenced perimeter for more than an allotted time period as specifiedby a set of business rules. This information may be transmitted, in realtime, to a mobile communication device associated with a complianceofficer.

In another embodiment, the compliance module 207, via the analyticengine 210, may, for each incoming message from the plurality ofABCT-Providers, transmit the ABCT-Vehicle identity associated with theincoming message and the ABCT-Provider unique code to a mobilecommunication device associated with a compliance officer.

The report generated by the compliance module 207 may be transmitted anddisplayed on a computing device, such as a smart phone, laptop orcomputer. The display may comprise dynamic list views and detail pages.The list view may comprise of various combinations of informationincluded in the messages received by the ABCT-Providers. For example,the list view may include the time the mobile communication deviceentered the geo-fence, the duration of time in the geo-fence, thelicense plate number associated with the mobile communication device,and the ABCT-Provider. The list may be updated or a particular field ina list may be updated. In one embodiment, a system user can select tosubscribe to updates of fields in data records, thereby ensuring thatthe user receives only the updates that the user selected to receive andwhen the user selects to view the updates.

In a preferred embodiment, the compliance module 207 will send thereport to an application on a mobile computing device associated withcompliance manager. The report may be in the form of a GUI, wherein thecompliance manager may interact with the information contained in thereport, as illustrated in FIGS. 3A-F. According to the preferredembodiment, the GUI displaying the report will include three real-timelists that will contain detailed information of all ABCT-Providertransactions taking place within the PA geo-fence. An “On-Site” listwill display all ABCT-Vehicles present within the geo-fence perimeter,as illustrated in FIG. 3A. A “Last Hour” list will display allABCT-Provider activity within the last hour within the geo-fenceperimeter, as illustrated in FIG. 3B. And, a “Last 24 Hour” list willinclude all ABCT-Provider activity that has taken place within thegeo-fence perimeter within the last 24 hours of the current time, asillustrated in FIG. 3C. The GUI may also display a summary of theinformation relating to a vehicle if a compliance manager selects orclicks on an item in the list, as illustrated in FIG. 3D.

Each list within the GUI display may some of the following information:ABCT Name; License Plate; Ride Count; Time on PA property; CustomerTransaction Type; and Time of Last Message. This information may beextracted by the analytic engine 210 from each message received by thePA ICT System 200 from each ABCT-Provider 202 and transmitted to thecompliance module 207 to generate or update a report. In one embodiment,the report is a virtual list view in a web application that isdynamically updated such that a compliance manager can seamlessly accessand manage the presented information.

The GUI displaying the report may provide functionality to query eachreport for specific information contained in the report, as illustratedin FIG. 3E. For example, a compliance manager may query the report for alicense plate number or transactions associated with ABCT-Provider. Ifthe license plate number or transaction is in the report, the officerhas confirmation that the vehicle has been authorized by theABCT-Provider and that the trip has been reported to the PA. If theplate number is not on the list, the officer has evidence of a potentialviolation of a set of business rules associated with the ABCT-Provider'soperating permit.

The GUI display also provides a view of a list of ABCT-Vehiclescurrently reported to be on PA property. The officer can use thisinformation to identify ABCT-Vehicles that are operating without propervisual identifiers (ABCT-Provider trade dress and placard), which may bea potential violation of a set of business rules associated with theABCT-Provider's operating permit.

The GUI display provides a view of a list of ABCT-Vehicles that are onPA property and that have exceeded the allowable dwell time. The officermay use this information to identify ABCT-Vehicles that are staging atthe PA property which may be a potential violation of a set of businessrules associated with the ABCT-Provider's operating permit.

The GUI display provides a view the transaction history of a specificABCT-Vehicle. The officer can use this information to identify potentialviolations. For example, recurring entry and exit transactions withoutassociated pick-up or drop-off transactions by an ABCT-Vehicle mayindicate recirculation on PA roadways which may be a potential violationof a set of business rules associated with the ABCT-Provider's operatingpermit.

Each potential violation of a set of business rules associated with theABCT-Provider's operating permit, may be highlighted in the report usinga warning color scheme, as illustrated in FIG. 3F. In one embodiment,each violation may be associated with a different color.

The PA ICT System 200 may also transmit to the mobile computing deviceassociated with compliance manager the map generated by the real-timemap module. The map may display the real-time locations of allABCT-Vehicles and/or ABCT-Provider transactions within geo-fenceperimeter. Such feature will allow the compliance managers to quicklylocate ABCT-Vehicles during operations.

The management dashboard module 208 may access data from the datastorage 204 to generate a report summarizing of all ABCT activity for agiven time period for each ABCT-Provider 202. For example, the reportmay indicate the number of entries, exits, pickups and drop-offsperformed by each of the ABCT-Providers during a specified time period.The generated report may be displayed on a computing device. Theinformation may be displayed in various formats, including but notlimited to graphs, tables, logs, and the like, as illustrated in FIG. 4.

The reconciliation report module 209 may generate a query for all theactivity data of the drivers associated with an ABCT-Provider 202 duringa specified time period and create a reconciliation report, asillustrated in FIG. 5. The reconciliation report comprises allactivities occurring in the geo-fenced perimeter for a specific timeperiod. The reconciliation report module 209 may compare the generatedreconciliation report for each ABCT-Provider with an independentreconciliation report prepared by each ABCT. The reconciliation reportmodule 209 may also generate a discrepancy report based on anyinconsistency between the generated reconciliation report and theindependent reconciliation report. In one embodiment, the reconciliationreport may be produced upon request. In another embodiment, thereconciliation report may be produced periodically, such as monthly oryearly.

In some embodiments, an invoice module 214 may generate a query foractivity data associated with services provided within the perimeter ofthe geo-fence for all drivers associated with an ABCT-Provider 202during a specified time period. For example, the invoice module 214 mayquery the data storage 204 for all passenger pick-up services anddrop-off services rendered within a PA geo-fence provided byABCT-Provider for the month of January. The invoice module 214 will thengenerate an invoice for the fees associated with services renderedwithin the perimeter of the geo-fence based on a set of business rulesas described in the PA's Permit. The PA ICT System 200 may then transmitthe invoice to the ABCT-Provider 202.

In another embodiment, a financial system (not shown) may be operablyconnected to the PA ICT System 200. The financial server may access thedata storage 204 to query the data stored for activities of anABCT-Provider within a geo-fenced area during a particular time period.Based on a set of business rules stored on the financial server, thefinancial server may create an invoice for the ABCT-Provider.

Additionally, the PA ICT System 200 includes requisite softwareinterfaces for different types of communication such as an emailinterface, short message service (SMS) interface, or a networkinterface. These are merely examples of the types of communicationprotocol interfaces (not shown) used by the PA ICT System 200 tocommunicate with various devices used by a compliance officer 212 and aground transportation unit 213. Moreover, these interfaces can includevarious sub-components (not shown) such as message servers, protocolstacks, associated databases, and the like.

The PA ICT System 200 may also include a license plate recognitionmodule 212. The license plate recognition module 212 is operativelyconnected to one or more cameras adapted to independently capture andrecognize a license plate image. A camera includes a processor formanaging image data and executing a license plate recognition programdevice. The license plate recognition program device includes a memoryis included for storing the license plate recognition program and thelicense plate images taken by an image capture device of the camera. Thelicense plate recognition module 212 may compare the license platenumbers captured by the camera with license plate ID's stored in thedata storage 204.

In a preferred embodiment, the license plate recognition involvescapturing photographic video or images of license plates, whereby theyare processed by a series of algorithms that are able to provide analpha numeric conversion of the captured license plate images into atext entry. There are seven primary algorithms that the softwarerequires for identifying a license plate: plate localization, which isresponsible for finding and isolating the plate on the picture; plateorientation and sizing, which compensates for the skew of the plate andadjusts the dimensions to the required size; normalization, whichadjusts the brightness and contrast of the image; character segmentationwhich finds the individual characters on the plates; optical characterrecognition; and syntactical/geometrical analysis, which checkcharacters and positions against country-specific rules.

The complexity of each of these algorithms determines the accuracy ofthe system. During the third phase (normalization), some systems useedge detection techniques to increase the picture difference between theletters and the plate backing. A median filter may also be used toreduce the visual noise on the image. In one embodiment, auxiliary datais also extracted from the at least one vehicle image, wherein theauxiliary data comprises information related to physical details of thevehicle.

As the license plate recognition system may also record time andlocation data in addition to license plate data, license plate imagedata, and image data of a vehicle. In one embodiment, the data may becollected over an extended period of time and stored for latersearching. In another embodiment, the data may be correlated, indexedand/or categorized in the data storage. The collected data may becompared to various existing or other data, such as the messagestransmitted to the PA server by the ABCT-Provider ICT System, andcorrelated and/or indexed to such data. That collected data may beprocessed, searched, and/or analyzed for a variety of purposes.

License plate recognition data may be correlated with ABCT provided datato verify ABCT-Provider message accuracy. The data may also be used togenerate volumetric forecasts and other operational and managementinformation. License plate recognition system may be able to obtainfurther information from an internal or external network about thevehicle based on the license plate number captured by the license platerecognition system. So, for example, the PA ICT System may be able todetermine the make, model, and year of every ABCT vehicle within itsgeo-fenced area. Alternatively, the PA ICT System may also identify theowner of the car associated with the license plate if it was an ABCTdriver and whether the registration fees are currently paid on the car,and a vast variety of other information.

License plate recognition system may also comprise various features,such as a timer to which keeps track of the length of time each vehiclepasses two points of interest. If there is a time limit for which theABCT-Vehicle cannot exceed, the system can send a red flag or warning toa compliance manager to indicate that the ABCT-Vehicle has overstatedthe time limit. The warning or red flag may be transmitted as a ping ormessage from the PA server to the mobile computing device applicationassociated with the compliance manager. There are a great many otheroperations that can be performed by the PA ICT System, such as keepingdaily logs of all vehicles that have entered or exited the perimeter ofthe geo-fenced area, which may be useful for law enforcement and otherapplications.

The PA ICT System, associated with the license plate recognition system,in one embodiment, may automatically generate violation citations forABCT-Vehicles that have been circling the roadways of the PA for toolong, or for cars that are no longer permitted by the ABCT-Provider toconduct transactions within the perimeter of a geo-fence, or issuealerts to police or security personnel if the system determines that aparticular car is stolen (in which case the central computer systemwould have access to a database of information to identify stolen cars)or is a car for which authorities are looking for some other reason (inwhich case the PA would have access to a database identifying cars forwhich authorities are looking).

At any time, a PA compliance manager may conduct an inspection ofABCT-Driver operations at a PA to confirm that such operations complywith the requirements set forth in a set of business rules associatedwith the ABCT Permit. To perform an inspection, compliance manager willrequire a real time web-based application that displays informationabout each ABCT-Provider trip being performed at the PA. The compliancemanager will be the primary users of the compliance manager application.They will be responsible for regulating all ABCT-Provider activitywithin the geo-fence. In one embodiment, the compliance managerapplication will receive real-time messages of the all ABCT-Providertransactions dynamically.

FIG. 6 illustrates a system logical architecture design for theprincipal message handling components of the PA ICT System 600. In apreferred embodiment, these components comprise four layers: a reverseproxy layer 601, load balancer 602, web application server cluster 603,and a database 604. The PA ICT System 600 also comprises a networkinterface to enable each of a plurality of ABCT-Providers to communicatewith the PA ICT System 600 through a communication medium, such as a webservice.

Due to the high volume of messages received from the ABCT-Providers,each component of the PA ICT System layers has a redundancy in order toprovide high availability. High availability provides the protectionfrom application failures that may arise from power failures, serverhardware faults, network hardware faults, configuration errors,application bugs, compatibility or performance issues and other causes.In a preferred embodiment, the PA ICT System 600 is designed to handle apeak load of over 3,000 messages per minute.

According to an embodiment of an invention, as part of the permittingprocess with a PA, an ABCT-Provider receives a digital certificate fromthe PA. The digital certificate is used to authenticate alltransmissions between the ABCT-Provider ICT System and the PA ICTSystem. The ABCT-Providers use an HTTPS to transmit secured messages viathe communication medium to a PA ICT System 600. The reserve proxyserver 601 associated with the PA ICT System 600 is used to take ininternet traffic in the HTTPS protocol received from the variousABCT-Providers. In one embodiment, an SSL reverse proxy cluster shall bethe first point of entry of the ABCT-Provider's messages.

The reverse proxy server 601 inspects the incoming HTTPS requests froman ABCT-Provider and authenticates the ABCT-Provider's ICT System withadditional authentication methods known in the art. Once authenticatedand any local processing is completed, the HTTP requests are forwardedto a load balancer 602. The reverse proxy server 601 transmits aresponse to the request back to the ABCT-Providers' ICT Systemscontaining the proper host names.

In one embodiment, the reverse proxy server 601 is configured with apublic DNS host name and publicly routable IP address. Thus, any linksthat are made available to users will resolve to the public IP addressor DNS hostname of the reverse proxy server 601. The reverse proxyserver 601 then performs mapping of the external HTTP request to theproper internal server.

Firewalls will enable certain network traffic from the public internetto the internal data service for the application. Only relevant andnecessary ports and protocols shall be allowed through the firewall.

Once the HTTP requests are received by the load balancer 602, they willbe forwarded to different web-service nodes. The load balancer will beused in order to provide load balancing 602 between web-service nodes.The load balancer 602 distributes the incoming HTTP requests to variousnodes in the web application server cluster 603 and to provide the SSLprotocol for encryption and decryption of the HTTP stream.

The load balancer 602 acts upon data found in the application layerprotocol such as the HTTP. The request are received by the load balancer602 and are distributed to a particular server based on a configurationalgorithm, such as a round robin, a weighted round robin, a leastconnection, or at least response time.

Web service clusters 603 comprise a plurality of web application serversor nodes. The nodes are be deployed in a cluster that can be expanded byadding more nodes into the cluster for horizontal scalability. In oneembodiment, there is a three node cluster comprising Tomcat webapplication containers that host the VTS web service API and thecompliance manager web service API.

The Database layer 604 shall be configured as an active/passive pair ofdatabase nodes. This configuration will provide just in time recoveryand redo logs. Active/passive database nodes process on one node, makingit the active node for that configuration. The IP address of the activenode is mapped to a virtual “node address”. If the active node fails, afailure safe module takes care of fail-over: it starts the process on apassive database, making it the active node, and remaps the node addressto the new active node's IP address. In most circumstances of a failure,the fail-over will occur quickly.

FIG. 7 shows a system for generating an invoice for services provided byan ABCT-Provider within the perimeters of a geo-fence by a third partysuch as a national or regional clearinghouse, according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention. The clearinghouse technologyinfrastructure 700 includes a clearinghouse ICT System 701 operativelycommunicating with a plurality of PAs 702 and a plurality ofABCT-Providers 703 via network interfaces 704.

In a typical example, network 720 includes the internet and a local areanetwork used by the PAs 702-1 to 702-3 and the ABCT-Providers 703-1 to703-3 to connect to the internet. Both the PAs 702-1 to 702-3 and theABCT-Providers 703-1 to 703-3 can communicate with clearinghouse ICTSystem 701 over network 720 using any number and combination of variousprotocols as known in the art.

The clearinghouse ICT System 701 includes data storage 705-1 to 705-3for storing data related to a plurality of PAs 702-1 to 702-3. As thedata is received from each of the PAs 702-1 to 702-3, the data may beprocessed by a geo-fence module 710, a permit management module 711,and/or a trip management module 712.

The geo-fence module 710 validates and stores multiple geo-fencelocations, referenced to specific PAs. It maintains a record of changesand provides the ability to verify whether a specific geographiccoordinate is inside or outside of a specific geo-fence. The permitmanagement module 711 links ABCT-Providers and PAs, and serves as arepository of all active, suspended, terminated, pending and expiredPermits. The permit management module 711 is the source of businessrules such as a the prevailing trip fee for a drop-off within a specificPA's geo-fence and it provides the capability to calculate fees andcharges, to record and alert Permit expiration and renewal dates and toprocess and store a record of Permit violations. The trip managementmodule 712 validates trip data formats and verifies that each tripassociates with a valid Permit, an active ABCT-Provider and aparticipating PA. The module records all valid trips and provides datafeeds to business processes such as billing, compliance and auditing.

For each PA, the data storage 705-1 to 705-3 may store geo-fencecoordinates, business rules, and a list of ABCT-Providers servicing thePA. The clearinghouse ICT System 701 also may store in the data storage705-1 to 705-3, messages and payment information from each of theABCT-Providers.

In one embodiment, the clearing house ICT System 701 receives paymentinformation from an ABCT-Provider ICT System 703-1 to 703-3. The paymentinformation relates to a payment from an ABCT-Provider for an invoice oftransactions occurring within the geo-fenced area associated with a PA.The clearing house ICT System 701 may verify at least a portion of thepayment information and store at least a portion of the paymentinformation in a database. The clearing house ICT System 701 then maytransmit a first electronic file comprising at least a portion of thepayment information to a PA associated with the invoice. In oneembodiment, the clearing house ICT System 701 may transmit a secondelectronic file comprises at least a confirmation of the payment to thePA to the ABCT-Provider ICT System 703-1 to 703-3. Furthermore, theclearing house ICT System 701 may also generate and transmit, to boththe PA and the ABCT-Provider, and accounting of all invoices andpayments by the PA and the ABCT-Provider in response to a request forthe accounting.

The clearinghouse ICT System 701 includes an analytic engine 706operatively connected to the data storage 705-1 to 705-3. The analyticengine 706 may access the data storage 705-1 to 705-3 and provide datato the financial module 713. The financial module 713 may calculatefees, generate invoices and process payments for each of theABCT-Providers servicing each of the PAs. The invoices and/or paymentsinformation may be stored in the data storage 705-1 to 705-3.

FIG. 8 shows a method for monitoring activities of an ABCT-Driver,according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Themethod begins at step 802, where an ABCT-Provider ICT System associatedwith an ABCT-Provider receives periodic location information from amobile device associated with an ABCT-Driver. In one embodiment, themobile device transmits a message to the ABCT-Provider, wherein themessage includes at least the geo-location of the mobile device(ABCT-Driver) and a date and timestamp.

At step 804, the ABCT-Provider ICT System determines if the mobiledevice is within a predefined geo-fence perimeter based on the locationinformation received from the mobile device.

At step 805, when a determination is made that the location of themobile device is within a predefined geo-fence perimeter, theABCT-Provider ICT System transmits a message to a PA ICT System. Themessage includes information related to location of the mobile device,identification of the driver and activity data. In one embodiment, theABCT ICT System generates a message comprising a header which includesgeographic locus, trip ID, ABCT ID, vehicle license plate ID, activitytime stamp, activity data, and number of users using the ABCT serviceassociated with the activity data along with the location information.

Though this embodiment of the method is performed by a PA ICT System,other servers or network elements may work in tandem with the PA ICTSystem to accomplish the method. Furthermore each task of the method maybe assigned to a different network element, each network element beingsuited to perform the task assigned. For instance, a database server maybe more suited to referencing the geo-fence database, and a locationserver may be more suited to making a location determination beforeforwarding it to the PA ICT System. When connections traversegeo-fences, such as in a moving vehicle, an algorithm may be employed tosplit the charge of the connection between fee rates based on the amountof time within each geo-fence, amount of data transferred within eachgeo-fence and the like.

FIG. 9 shows a method for billing an ABCT-Provider for services renderedwithin a perimeter of a geo-fence, according to one embodiment of thepresent invention. The method begins at step 902, where a PA ICT Systemdefining a geo-fenced perimeter receives a message from an ABCT-ProviderICT System. The message comprises at least location information, deviceidentification and activity data. The PA ICT System stores the messagesin a data storage.

At step 904, the PA ICT System determines if the activity data containedin the message relates to a service being rendered within the geo-fencedperimeter by an ABCT-Driver. If the activity data relates to a servicebeing rendered within the geo-fenced perimeter, the PA server creates alog of the activity and associates a fee to the activity. For example,if a driver of a driver associated with an ABCT picks-up a passengerwithin a geo-fenced area of a PA, the PA ICT System will create a log ofthe activity and associate a fee with the pick-up service rendered.

In one embodiment, the PA ICT System periodically query the data storagefor activity data relating to services rendered within the geo-fencedperimeter. For example, the PA ICT System may query the data storage forall ABCT-Provider activity within a geo-fenced perimeter comprising apick-up service, drop-off service, entry into the geo-fence and exitfrom the geo-fence. The PA may charge fees according to a set ofbusiness rules for at least one of these activities or all theactivities. Additionally, the PA ICT System may periodically query thedata storage for violations of the set of business rules. For example,the PA ICT System may generate a list of ABCT-Vehicles that have beenwithin the geo-fence for a period of time that exceeds an allottedperiod of time as set forth in the set of business rules. The PA mayalso charge a fee for any of the violations of the set of businessrules.

At step 906, the PA ICT System generates an invoice for theABCT-Provider comprising the fees for each activity in which a servicewas rendered within the geo-fenced perimeter. In one embodiment, the PAICT System compares the activities of an ABCT-Provider within aspecified period with a set of business rules. Based on the correlationand the business rules, a set of fees are determined for theABCT-Provider.

FIG. 10 shows a method for invoicing an ABCT-Provider for servicesrendered within a perimeter of a geo-fence through a third party such asa national or regional clearinghouse, according to one embodiment of thepresent invention. The method begins at step 1002, where a clearinghouseICT System receives a plurality of geo-fence perimeter coordinates froma plurality of PAs. The PAs, in one embodiment, may provide additionalinformation such as ABCT-Provider business rules.

At step 1004, the clearinghouse ICT System transmits the geo-fenceperimeters to a set of ABCT-Providers servicing each PA. For example,drivers of an ABCT-Provider may be providing pick-up and drop-offservices to customers at the San Francisco International Airport and theOakland International Airport. The clearinghouse ICT System will send tothe ABCT-Provider the geo-fence perimeter information for both the SanFrancisco International Airport and the Oakland International Airport.

At step 1006, the clearinghouse ICT System receives a message each timethe ABCT-Driver performs an activity defined in any of the Permits towhich the ABCT-Provider is a party. Each message is stored within a datastorage and is associated with its respective PA.

In one embodiment, the clearinghouse ICT System transmits the receivedmessages, in real-time, to the PA ICT System for monitoring by the PA ofABCT-Provider activities within a PA's geo-fenced area. In anotherembodiment, the clearinghouse server queries the received messages andcompares them to a set of business rules. If there is a violation of thebusiness rules, a notification is sent to the PA ICT System.

At step 1008, the clearinghouse server queries the messages foractivities associated with services rendered within the geo-fencedperimeter. For example, the clearinghouse may query pick-up services ordrop-off services that have taken place within the geo-fenced perimeter.The query may be done periodically, such as daily, weekly or monthly.

At step 1010, the clearinghouse ICT System generates an invoice for eachABCT-Provider of fees associated with each Permit, and transmits theinvoices to the ABCT-Providers.

At step 1012, the clearinghouse server receives payments from theABCT-Providers associated with the invoices.

At step 1014, the clearinghouse server sends payments received from theABCT-Providers to their respective PAs.

While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention,other and further embodiments of the present invention may be devisedwithout departing from the basic scope thereof. For example, aspects ofthe present invention may be implemented in hardware or software or in acombination of hardware and software. One embodiment of the presentinvention may be implemented as a program product for use with acomputer system. The program(s) of the program product define functionsof the embodiments (including the methods described herein) and can becontained on a variety of computer-readable storage media. An example ofa suitable computing system environment in which the invention may beimplemented, although as made clear above, the computing systemenvironment is only one example of a suitable computing environment andis not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use orfunctionality of the invention. Neither should the computing environmentbe interpreted as having any dependency or requirement relating toanyone nor combination of components illustrated in the exemplaryoperating environment.

Computing device typically includes a variety of computer readablemedia. Computer readable media can be any available media that can beaccessed by computer and includes both volatile and nonvolatile media,removable and non-removable media. By way of example, and notlimitation, computer readable media may comprise tangible computerstorage media and communication media. Computer storage media includesvolatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implementedin any method or technology for storage of information such as computerreadable instructions, data structures, program modules or other data.Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM,EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CDROM, digitalversatile disks (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices,or any other medium which can be used to store the desired informationand which can accessed by computer. Communication media typicallyembodies computer readable instructions, data structures, programmodules or other data. While communication media includes non-ephemeralbuffers and other temporary digital storage used for communications, itdoes not include transient signals in as far as they are ephemeral overa physical medium (wired or wireless) during transmission betweendevices. Combinations of any of the above should also be included withinthe scope of computer readable media. The system memory includescomputer storage media in the form of volatile and/or nonvolatile memorysuch as read only memory (ROM) and random access memory (RAM). Theprocessing unit and bus allow for transfer of information betweenelements within computer, such as during start-up, typically stored inROM. RAM typically contains data and/or program modules that areimmediately accessible to and/or presently being operated on byprocessing unit.

The computer may also include other removable/non-removable,volatile/nonvolatile computer storage media include, but are not limitedto, magnetic tape cassettes, flash memory cards, digital versatiledisks, Blu-Ray disks, digital video tape, solid state RAM, solid stateROM, and the like. The hard disk drive is typically connected to thesystem bus through a non-removable memory interface such as interface,or removably connected to the system bus by a removable memoryinterface, such as interface.

The drives and their associated computer storage media discussed aboveprovide storage of computer readable instructions, data structures,program modules and other data for the computer. For example, disk driveis illustrated as storing operating system, application programs, otherprogram modules, and program data. Note that these components can eitherbe the same as or different from operating system, application programs,other program modules, and program data. Operating system, applicationprograms, other program modules, and program data are given differentnumbers here to illustrate that, at a minimum, they are differentcopies. A user may enter commands and information into the computerthrough input devices such as a keyboard and pointing device, commonlyreferred to as a mouse, trackball or touch pad. Other input devices mayinclude a microphone, joystick, game pad, satellite dish, depth ormotion sensor, scanner, or the like. These and other input devices areoften connected to the processing unit through the system bus, but maybe connected by other interface and bus structures, such as a parallelport, game port, or a universal serial bus (USB). A monitor or othertype of display device is also connected to the system bus via aninterface, such as a video interface. In addition to the monitor,computers may also include other peripheral output devices such asspeakers and printer, which may be connected through an outputperipheral interface.

One of ordinary skill in the art can appreciate that a computer or otherclient device can be deployed as part of a computer network. In thisregard, the present invention pertains to any computer system having anynumber of memory or storage units, and any number of applications andprocesses occurring across any number of storage units or volumes. Thepresent invention may apply to an environment with server computers andclient computers deployed in a network environment, having remote orlocal storage. The present invention may also apply to a standalonecomputing device, having programming language functionality,interpretation and execution capabilities.

In view of the foregoing, the scope of the present invention isdetermined by the claims that follow.

1. A method comprising: receiving from a mobile device at a firstinformation system location information and transaction information;accessing a data storage on which coordinates of a geographical boundaryhave been stored; determining if the location of the mobile device iswithin the geographical boundary; and transmitting a message to a secondinformation system when the location of the mobile device is within thegeographical boundary.
 2. A method according to claim 1, wherein themessage comprises at least one of the following: a vehicleidentification, a driver identification, a trip identification, atransportation company identification, a license plate identification,and a timestamp.
 3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the messageis transmitted periodically.
 4. A method according to claim 1, whereinthe message is transmitted upon request.
 5. A computer program product,comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium having acomputer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readableprogram code adapted to be executed by one or more processors toimplement a method, the method comprising: receiving from a mobiledevice at a first information system location information andtransaction information; accessing a data storage on which coordinatesof a geographical boundary have been stored; determining if the locationof the mobile device is within the geographical boundary; andtransmitting a message to a second information system when the locationof the mobile device is within the geographical boundary.
 6. A systemcomprising a processor-based application, which when executed on acomputer, will cause the processor to: receive from a mobile device at afirst information system location information and transactioninformation; access a data storage on which coordinates of ageographical boundary have been stored; determine if the location of themobile device is within the geographical boundary; and transmit amessage to a second information system when the location of the mobiledevice is within the geographical boundary.
 7. A method comprising:receiving from a mobile device at a first information system informationsufficient to identify an activity occurring within a predefinedgeographical boundary; retrieving a set of business rules from abusiness rule database; determining if the business rules apply to theactivity; calculating a fee based on the business rule and the activity;and transmitting the calculated fee information to a second informationsystem.
 8. A method according to claim 7, wherein the calculated feeinformation comprises an invoice.
 9. A method according to claim 7,wherein the activity comprises an entry into the predefined geographicalboundary, an exit out of the predefined geographical boundary, apassenger pick up or a passenger drop off.
 10. A computer programproduct, comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium having acomputer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readableprogram code adapted to be executed by one or more processors toimplement a method, the method comprising: receiving from a mobiledevice at a first information system information sufficient to identifyan activity occurring within a predefined geographical boundary;retrieving a set of business rules from a business rule database;determining if the business rules apply to the activity; calculating afee based on the business rule and the activity; and transmitting thecalculated fee information to a second information system.
 11. A systemcomprising a processor-based application, which when executed on acomputer, will cause the processor to: receive from a mobile device at afirst information system information sufficient to identify an activityoccurring within a predefined geographical boundary; retrieve a set ofbusiness rules from a business rule database; determine if the businessrules apply to the activity; calculate a fee based on the business ruleand the activity; and transmit the calculated fee information to asecond information system.
 12. A method comprising: receiving from amobile device at a first information system a plurality of messages,wherein each message includes at least a timestamp; comparing thetimestamp of a first message with a timestamp of a second message;generating an alert when the difference between the timestamp of thefirst message and the timestamp of the second message exceeds athreshold time limit.
 13. A computer program product, comprising anon-transitory computer-readable medium having a computer-readableprogram code embodied therein, the computer-readable program codeadapted to be executed by one or more processors to implement a method,the method comprising: receiving from a mobile device at a firstinformation system a plurality of messages, wherein each messageincludes at least a timestamp; comparing the timestamp of a firstmessage with a timestamp of a second message; generating an alert whenthe difference between the timestamp of the first message and thetimestamp of the second message exceeds a threshold time limit.
 14. Asystem comprising a processor-based application, which when executed ona computer, will cause the processor to: receive from a mobile device ata first information system a plurality of messages, wherein each messageincludes at least a timestamp; compare the timestamp of a first messagewith a timestamp of a second message; generate an alert when thedifference between the timestamp of the first message and the timestampof the second message exceeds a threshold time limit.
 15. A methodcomprising receiving at a first information system a vehicleidentification; comparing said vehicle identification with vehicleidentification information received by the first information system froma second information system, wherein said vehicle identificationinformation includes at least a license plate number associated with avehicle and a company associated with the vehicle; generating a reportif said vehicle identification matches said vehicle identificationinformation; transmitting the report to a third information system. 16.The method according to claim 15, wherein the third information systemcomprises a mobile device.
 17. A computer program product, comprising anon-transitory computer-readable medium having a computer-readableprogram code embodied therein, the computer-readable program codeadapted to be executed by one or more processors to implement a method,the method comprising: receiving at a first information system a vehicleidentification; comparing said vehicle identification with vehicleidentification information received by the first information system froma second information system, wherein said vehicle identificationinformation includes at least a license plate number associated with avehicle and a company associated with the vehicle; generating a reportif said vehicle identification matches said vehicle identificationinformation; transmitting the report to a third information system. 18.The computer program product according to claim 17, wherein the thirdinformation system comprises a mobile device.
 19. A system comprising aprocessor-based application, which when executed on a computer, willcause the processor to: receiving at a first information system avehicle identification; comparing said vehicle identification withvehicle identification information received by the first informationsystem from a second information system, wherein said vehicleidentification information includes at least a license plate numberassociated with a vehicle and a company associated with the vehicle;generating a report if said vehicle identification matches said vehicleidentification information; transmitting the report to a thirdinformation system.
 20. The system according to claim 19, wherein thethird information system comprises a mobile device.
 21. A methodcomprising receiving at a first information system a plurality ofmessages from a second information system, wherein each message isassociated with an activity of a vehicle occurring within a predefinedgeographical boundary; storing the plurality of messages in a databaseassociated with a first information system; generating a list of one ormore of the activities; and transmitting the list to a third informationsystem.
 22. The method according to claim 21, wherein the thirdinformation system comprises a mobile device.
 23. The method of claim21, wherein the list is dynamically updated when a message is receivedat a first information system.
 24. The method of claim 21, furthercomprising identifying vehicle locations based on information containedin the plurality of messages.
 25. The method of claim 22, furthercomprising providing a map of vehicle locations.
 26. A computer programproduct, comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium having acomputer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readableprogram code adapted to be executed by one or more processors toimplement a method, the method comprising: receiving at a firstinformation system a plurality of messages from a second informationsystem, wherein each message is associated with an activity of a vehicleoccurring within a predefined geographical boundary; storing theplurality of messages in a database associated with a first informationsystem; generating a list of one or more of the activities; andtransmitting the list to a third information system.
 27. The computerprogram product according to claim 26, wherein the third informationsystem comprises a mobile device.
 28. The method of claim 26, whereinthe list is dynamically updated when a message is received at a firstinformation system.
 29. The computer program product of claim 26,further comprising identifying vehicle locations based on informationcontained in the plurality of messages.
 30. The computer program productof claim 29, further comprising providing a map of vehicle locations.31. A system comprising a processor-based application, which whenexecuted on a computer, will cause the processor to: receive at a firstinformation system a plurality of messages from a second informationsystem, wherein each message is associated with an activity of a vehicleoccurring within a predefined geographical boundary; store the pluralityof messages in a database associated with a first information system;generate a list of one or more of the activities; and transmit the listto a third information system.
 32. The system according to claim 31,wherein the third information system comprises a mobile device.
 33. Thesystem of claim 31, wherein the list is dynamically updated when amessage is received at a first information system.
 34. The system ofclaim 31, further comprising identifying vehicle locations based oninformation contained in the plurality of messages.
 35. The system ofclaim 34, further comprising providing a map of vehicle locations. 36.The system of claim 31, wherein the list includes at least one of a listof vehicles currently within the predefined geographical boundary; alist of all activities within the last hour; or a list of all activitieswithin the last day.
 37. The system of claim 31, wherein the at leastone list of one or more activities is displayed on a graphical userinterface.
 38. The system of claim 37, wherein the graphical userinterface includes a query pane for receiving user input and a resultspane for displaying the results of the query.
 39. A method comprising:receiving at a first information system a message from a secondinformation system wherein the message includes information sufficientto identify an activity; retrieving a set of business rules from adatabase; determining if the business rules apply to the activityidentified in the message; calculating a fee based on the business rulesand the activity; transmitting the calculated fee information to thesecond information system; receiving at the first information systempayment information from the second information system; and transmittingthe payment information to a third information system.
 40. A methodaccording to claim 39, wherein the calculated fee information comprisesan invoice.
 41. A method according to claim 39, wherein the activitycomprises an entry into the predefined geographical boundary, an exitout of the predefined geographical boundary, a passenger pick up or apassenger drop off.